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USATF is launching a large study to determine the relationship between pre-run stretching and running injuries. You have to be 13 or older and run 10 or more miles a week in order to qualify. Every athlete that is apart of this will be randomly assigned to stretch or not to stretch. Those who participate will have to follow a detailed 4-min protocol for specific muscles over a 3 month period. This study has been approved by the Institutional Review Board of Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring Maryland. To learn more about the study or register to be a participant, visit www.usatf.org/stretchstudy/

I found this in the current issue of USATF pg. 9

Do you think this is a good idea?

Depends a lot of the kind of stretching. Dynamic stretching before doing something explosive is good. Static stretching is best done after the workout.

Not sure if it will make as much of a difference for distance runners.

As far as i have heard from coaches, stretching has nothing to do with injury prevention BEFORE a workout. It is all about getting blood into your muscles. Sometimes the easiest way to do that is to jog and do dynamic stretches. The after-workout static stretch, however, i think helps in injury prevention like you said. Ill be interested to see if this study suggests something similar or something different. Keep us posted!

Some research has been done already correlating stretching and injury.

Van Mechelen, et al. 1993 found stretching before running was not associated with running injuries.

Pope, et al., 2000 found no evidence that pre-exercise stretching reduces injury risk

Lindstrom, et al., 1999 suggested that pre-exercise stretching has no preventative effect on muscular soreness, and/or tenderness following exercise

..there are more. Stretching and injury is hard to prove or disprove in my opinion because no one will do a study that people will voluntarily get hurt--it has to be more observational. It will be very interesting where they take this and what they find.